


The Rifts Between Us

by Melody_LongWolf



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, Solavellan, adaarbull
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-18
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:49:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25965394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melody_LongWolf/pseuds/Melody_LongWolf
Summary: Salem Adaar had a good thing going until an explosion at the Temple of Sacred Ashes wiped out her mercenary group. Now Iron Bull no longer has competition, but all he seems interested in is helping the qunari woman get over her loss. Will he be able to handle learning that there is more to Salem's story than just being a simple qunari mercenary?Elyssa had a lot to learn as First to the Lavellan clan, mostly how to not act so impulsively. After an explosion at the Temple of Sacred Ashes marks her with unknown power and settles the weight of the world on her shoulders, will she grow into the leader she was meant to be? What will she do when the power she was granted leads her into the arms of a certain elven apostate?
Relationships: Female Adaar/The Iron Bull (Dragon Age)/Original Female Character(s), Female Inquisitor/Solas (Dragon Age)
Kudos: 8





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This story was co-written by NerdQueen228. Her account is on Fanfiction.net so please go like and review on her account as well as this one. Thank you and enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darkness, a voice, and... spiders?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Elven translations are at the end. Please read and review both here and on NerdQueen228's fanfiction account. Enjoy our retelling of Dragon Age Inquisition!

Darkness. She was surrounded in an ominous black veil she couldn’t pierce. She couldn’t see, though elven eyes normally could. Her eyes darted around in a desperate attempt to gain her bearings. Her hair whipped around her angular face as she turned her head frantically side to side. In a desperate attempt to find her way out, she stumbled blindly through the thick black fog that surrounded her. Still, the darkness enveloped her. Every step she took brought no sense of bearing, no sense of direction, no sense of purpose, and left her feeling more lost than before. The darkness was not merely a physical barrier in which she couldn’t see, it was also a mental cloud that robbed her of every sense she possessed save for fear. She attempted to call for help, to anyone that would listen, but no sound escaped her parched throat. She was alone. She was lost. She was afraid…

Then pain tore through her like a screeching demon. White-hot fire spread through her left palm, stealing the last breath she could summon. She fell to her slender knees clutching her left hand. Her very being became the excruciating pain spreading through her palm. Still, she couldn’t see what had caused this explosion of fire she was suffering. The world was just as dark as before. She was a helpless victim of the violent sensations spreading from her hand. She tried to draw her magic to her, but none came. The soft green aura she had felt since she was old enough to remember was lost to her now. The fade wouldn’t help her here in this dismal place where none but her seemed to exist. She was doomed to wander painfully through what she could only describe as the Void...

 _Please,_ her mind whispered to any being that could hear from the depths of this forsaken place. One last try, if only to say that she did. _Please, someone – anyone – help me._

She was done, could do no more. She accepted her fate; this would be where she ended. Then a voice soft and warm as a summer’s breeze called to her. “Ma nuvenin. Take my hand.” She could see nothing through the dark shadows that held her captive. Yet, she felt a presence as soft and warm as the voice that spoke. Hope as a bursting star exploded inside her chest. She reached for the warm presence, sighing in relief when she found it easily. The pain that was spreading through her hand disappeared briefly when she grasped the long slender hand she could only feel. She was lifted past the darkness and fear. She was pulled towards the warmth she was quickly coming to rely on. She needn’t be afraid anymore. The darkness and pain were gone. She was safe with this presence, with the being that possessed this warming, healing aura. She was free, or so she thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ma nuvenin - as you wish


	2. The Temple of Ashes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An explosion at the Temple of Sacred Ashes causes Salem to lose everything

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was written by Nerdqueen228. This story will also be on her fanfiction account so make sure to go like it there as well. Enjoy!

“Fucking nobles,” A large woman growled, tilting her head one way then the other. This woman was strange to look at with large curved horns on her head that went back and then up. Her skin was light grey, with slightly darker grey spots dotting her face and body if you could have seen it under her armor. Her long red hair was tied off with a white ribbon. “They try to cheap out on us even with all the shit we’ve done for them.” She complained, tossing a small sack of coins up and down in the air. Behind her was a black-haired man, Lue, grinning for all the world like an affectionate sibling.

“The Crimson Sword never backs down,” He chanted from the cart that carried their bounty of goods and supplies. “You think the guys are doing okay at the conclave?”

“Please, a bunch of templars and mages?” The woman waved her hand in dismissal. “The boys could manage that in their sleep. So long as Reyle and Tally don’t bicker too much,”

The man nodded. Though both Reyle and Tally were Tal-Vashoth, the two got along about as much as a cat that had been thrown in water. Reyle had left the Qun after seeing the world outside of Par Vollen. He was a broad male that stood slightly taller than your average qunari. Tally had been Salem’s close friend since her childhood. He was slightly younger than her father.

The problem between the two was the difference in personality. Tally’s -look before you leap- attitude collided explosively with Reyle’s, -shoot first ask questions later- type of lifestyle. In fact, the only thing that the two got along on were Salem and beating The Iron Chargers, the steadfast rivals that the Crimson Sword had. 

Lue snickered at the thought of the two males butting heads in front of the Divine, and turned his attention to the temple that was growing nearer. They had just passed a little keep city. The last they would see until they got to the meeting. He wanted to ask Adaar to stop and let them rest, but he knew she was restless being away from the crew. For a deadly Vashoth, she could be a real mother hen. Not that any of the guys would say that to her face, everyone valued their body parts attached right where they were.

The peaceful atmosphere was shattered by an earth-rumbling explosion that frightened the horses the two were riding. While the male tried to grab the reins and stop the horses from running away with him and their cart, the horned woman expertly steered her horse to a section of the road so it could get its bearings and calm down. When she did so, her attention was pulled back to the temple and the horrific scene before her. 

It was gone. Pieces of debris were raining down upon the great structure, and a green light was rising to the sky. Her eyes followed it up to see a portal forming. No, that was a hole, a tear in the sky. 

But… 

Her eyes darted back down to where the conclave had met. “No, no, no.” she chanted, turning her horse towards the road again. “Lue, go back to Haven,” she ordered, leaving no room or time to argue as she heeled her horse pushing him faster up the trail. 

_‘Please, be ok.’_ She pleaded with the Maker, the Elven Gods, the qunari, and anyone else who would possibly listen. Her people had to be ok. She forced her horse faster than she normally pushed him even with a time limit. She had to know they were okay. 

Even from a distance, the horned woman could see the destruction of the Temple of Sacred Ashes and smell burning flesh. There were other people who were coming on horses behind her, but she paid them no attention as she flung herself from her horse to the ground, stumbling slightly but undeterred. “Tally!” She screamed out to the silent place of worship. “Reyle! Tomas! Somebody answer me.” She was looking around for any shred of evidence she could find of the men and women she sought after, flinging wood and stone to the side as she made her way to the front of the building. 

An angry black-haired woman in… Seeker armor walked up to her. “What happened?” 

She turned angry grey eyes on the woman. “Oh yes, I know so much because you didn’t just see me ride up on a horse literally a minute ago,” The human woman was only slightly shorter than the other, but she did not cow to her. “I don’t have time for this, I need to find my men. They have to be here.” Salem turned from the seeker and moved things around.

The worry was starting to show on her face, liquid mercury eyes darting to and fro before making her way inside the temple the moment she could clear a semi-traversable path. If you wanted to call it inside with the roof and most of the walls blown to hell and back. “Wait,” The woman called out to the redhead. “Who are you?”

“Salem Adaar. Captain of the Crimson Swords.” The horned woman threw over her shoulder before hissing from the door hot doorknob. She learned after the first time that touching the damn knobs was a bad idea, so she started booting doors off of barely intact walls much to the Seeker’s horror. “My men and I were contracted to be the meat barricades between the templars and mages here. I sent everyone else ahead while I dealt with some Orlesian noble who didn’t want to pay us the right amount.” 

“I see.” The Seeker said, a sad little sigh in her tone.

“Shut up. Don’t sound like that. My men are tough bastards… they… If anyone made it out, it’s them.” She clenched her fist tightly before moving forward. “Where was the conclave held?” Salem asked, less heated than before.

The Seeker moved forward towards a set of large chard doors that looked a sneeze away from turning into a pile of ash. When the human woman touched a part of the door and it crumbled a bit under her hands, he pulled back slightly and looked at the structure as if analyzing if it stood a chance of holding. 

Salem huffed and shouldered past the warrior woman. She took both of her hands and pushed the doors, causing them to fall into pieces around the two of them. The ash that filled the air made it hard to breathe but the smell on the other side was so much worse. The area was filled with bodies half-melted into the ground and walls faces screaming in pain. What was worse was that she recognized a few horned figures near the entrance. “Oh, Reyle.” She whispered. Her throat was tight and there was a little break in her voice.

“He was one of yours?” The seeker asked but she already knew he was. The look on her face was surprisingly human, something the seeker was not expecting from a qunari. Nothing like the harsh and schooled features of those she had met before this one.

“My second in command.” The words were soft as the grey face turned away from the other woman’s eyes. “I am going to find who did this, seeker. And when I do I will kill them.” The woman’s face turned back to survey the field in front of her. The human could see a fire in her eyes, a thirst for justice for her men.

There was an epicenter of the blast, cleared of any and everything with large pulsating green shifting floating stones. Salem had no idea what to make of that. “I should have been here, not dealing with some petty fucking noble.” Her fist collided with the stone banister leaving a little crack and some blood and the sound of teeth clenched too hard.

The moment was broken by thudding footsteps echoing off the halls behind the two women. Salem didn’t turn just staring out at the melted bodies trying to see if she could notice others of her group. Not everyone in The Crimson Sword was tal-vashoth or vashoth. It infuriated the tall woman that she couldn’t tell one chard twisted body from another. They were hers. And she couldn’t even tell anymore. The horns gave away some but…

Her chest hurt. It was tight and uncomfortable and it just kept getting tighter. She couldn’t breathe, no she was breathing too shallow for it to do any good. Salem grabbed her chest with one hand. She and Lue were alone. They were the last of The Crimson Sword. Burning took over her eyes, but she refused to give in to it. She had other things to do before she could lay down and cry. She had to find something, anything that would point to how this happened. She had to tell Lue. She had to make sure she was in on this. 

“Leliana!” The seeker called out. When Salem turned, she noticed a red-haired woman with a purple cloth wrapped slightly around her head and pinned to her armor. Her sharp hazel blue eyes sliced like a dagger at Salem as if they could do some damage that the Temple had not. “Have you found the Divine?” 

The redhead shook her head. “I have not. I assume you and...your new friend hasn’t found her either, Cassandra?”

The vashoth didn’t say anything but crossed her arms over her armor chest. Cassandra, the woman now knew the seeker's name to be, shook her head. “No, we have not.” Her tone was sad. “She should have been here, but I hope she was somewhere else.” 

A rumbling, buzzing sound echoed from the rock-like formation above them before large streaks of light shot out in every direction and the portal above to widen and pulsate. Salem pulled out her daggers if one could call the large curved blades daggers. From the portal fell a willow figure with a glowing woman behind it. Everyone paused for a moment before Salem moved to her. Her ash white hair was covered in debris and grime. The padded light green armor she wore was covered in little tears and soot. Moving the woman into a sitting position, she saw the distinctive long ears of an elf and the bright white lines that looked like branches running up her cheekbones and around the bottom side of her eyes. Salem could see scrapes and bruises on the exposed alabaster flesh of the she-elf. Her left hand was glowing the same shade of green as the portal. 

“Look out!” Her head snapped up as green spirits came out of the portal. As quickly as she could without hurting the unconscious woman, Salem pushed her into the nearest person’s arms. A blonde man with a huge furry collar around his armor. He protested, but couldn’t do much more than that as the horned woman ran off. 

“Do you have someplace to go?” The Vashoth growled, plunging a dagger through another of the translucent humanoid figures. The creatures just let out a bellowing screech and swung claw-like hands at her before fizzling away with the next attack

“Retreat to Haven!” The male holding the unconscious elf commanded as he retreated, unable to fend off the enemy with his hands full of she-elf. Salem sheathed one of her daggers and grabbed the woman in one arm and threw her over her shoulder. The fur man nodded gratefully to her and drew his sword ready to slay any creature that came too close to the retreating group.

“Cassandra and I have horses,” Salem said, “She knows the way to Haven, right?” The seeker, who was jogging to keep up with her nodded. “If the elf was here during the conclave, she might know something.”

“She is possibly the one who started all this.” Cassandra snarled as she watched the horned woman drape the elf on her horse before climbing up. The seeker wasn’t sure what to make of the qunari yet but she had to admit that she wasn’t as aggressive as the ones she met previously. At least not yet.

Salem looked over her shoulder for a moment to the seeker. “What the hell was that? Demons following from the sky?”

Cassandra shook her head. “I do not know. It shouldn’t be possible.” The two women looked shaken and Salem’s mind was moving quickly, too quickly for the topic in her opinion.

“Cassandra, right?” She said loudly over the whipping wind they caused in the rush to get back to Haven. She didn’t really give the woman time to answer before plowing on with her thoughts. “Those bright beams of light from the rip...do you think they are going to make other rips?”

“Maker help us if they do,” Cassandra said dreadfully before both women lapsed into silence at the mere thought of the horror it could cause.

By the time the three women got to Haven, the little elven woman was not doing good. Her breath was shallow and wheezing. The mark itself seemed to be growing and causing her great pain. “Cassandra,” Salem called to the black-haired woman, having not been told off for the casual use of the name. “she’s not gonna make it if we can’t do something about this thing.” She raised the elf’s hand and let it drop. 

Cassandra looked at Salem then to the elf before nodding. “Bring her with you.” The redhead nodded and princess-carried the elf through the crowd who were already gossiping about the conclave and pointing at the two non-humans with accusations. “Solas!” Cassandra yelled out as if the simple call would summon anyone. And it did, a bald elf exited the crowd leaning against his staff once he stopped. “You know about the Fade. Take this woman and make sure that she doesn’t die.” The seeker’s eyes narrowed in discontentment

Solas, the elf, looked at the woman in her arms and nodded, gesturing to the horned woman to follow him. He had her lay the female in a small wooden house and bid her goodbye. “If there is any help you need, come find me,” Salem told him. He looked up surprised but said nothing and nodded.

As soon as Salem exited, Lue was on her. “Salem...Where are they?” His voice told her he knew the answer but needed to hear it to kill any hope he had.

She shook her head and pulled him into a hug. The cloth on her arms dampened but no sound reached her ears as he pulled her closer to him. Salem could feel eyes on them but they weren’t important. The last member of her company needed her and she’d be damned if he has to mourn alone. The urge to cry was still there but Lue needed someone strong to lean on. Later, he would hold her as she cried but for now, she stood strong for him.

“I’m sorry.” The seekers' voice was close. Looking down, the Vasoth saw the sadness in her eyes. She lost her own people. Salem held her other arm out to her but she shook her head. She didn’t seem like the kind of person to accept such a thing but still, she had to give her the offer. She didn’t know her but misery didn’t care who it hurt. Why not give someone comfort when you have the chance. 


	3. Playing The Waiting Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone, including Salem, waits for the woman from the rift to awaken.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was written by NerdQueen228. Please support the story on her Fanfiction account as well as here. Thank you and enjoy!

Salem leaned against the door to the dungeon waiting for the bald elf to finish what he was doing. She wasn’t sure where Cassandra had found the apostate, but he seemed to be the only one able to stabilize the woman who had fallen from the portal. It was paramount that she stays alive. If she wasn’t the one who caused this, as many believed, then she must know something. 

Salem was just as invested in this woman as the others who had come together in the last few days. She had been furious originally just like the others, however, as Salem’s temper cooled, her logic had caught up with her. There were too many pieces that just weren’t fitting together. A single elf couldn’t have the power to cause so much destruction. The temple was too big of a job to be just one person. 

This was planned, and whoever did it was part of a group. She knew it in her gut. Her men would have been able to take down one elf. So why didn’t they? Especially with so many other mages and templars there.

Two plus two did not equal one. Something was missing. 

The clicking of the locks jolted her from her thoughts. Solas exited the room softly closing the door behind him. She was unable to greet him before an angry black haired woman stormed down the stairs. “Has she made any progress?”

“She is still stable if only barely. The magic in her hand is vastly unstable and her body is having a hard time adjusting to it. I may not be able to keep her in such a state much longer.” His voice was clinical and tired. Solas had been hard at work for a while, checking on the elf every hour or so and having to pour more magic into the jagged mark on her hand as if to counter the spasms of chaos.

“If she dies, Solas, I will have you hung.” The woman’s words were nothing more than a growl and Salem decided to step in.

“Cassandra, no other mage can tell us what this is. Solas is the only person who is trying to fix this. It is ill-advised to threaten the man who is keeping our  _ one _ witness alive.” She placed a hand on Solas’s shoulder. “Go get some rest.” He nodded at her and moved past the Seeker.

“Are you on his side now?” The woman snarled at the grey female. Salem looked at Cassandra unimpressed, arms crossed in a way that made Cassandra feel like a petulant child being scolded by her mother. “That was uncalled for.” The Seeker apologized.

“I know you are stressed, but taking it out on those around you is only going to slow the process more.” The Seeker nodded. She didn’t need to be told that she knew, but she hated being helpless to do anything. No matter how many demons and spirits she killed that came from these rifts, still more followed like an endless flow of water. 

“Why are you here?” The Seeker asked softly.

“I guess I was hoping she would be awake.” The two women stood silent while both of them had pinned their hopes of avenging those they had lost on this woman. 

“Come with me.” Cassandra motioned to the stairs that went upward to the chapel, while Salem followed cautiously. This place was vastly different from what Salem was used to. Many of the people stared at her as she passed, not that that was odd. Her grey skin and horns got many people’s eyes turned towards her. But it was no longer in fear but in speculation. The thoughts on their simple minds were easy to read. Why was a qunari following around the Seeker? And why was the Seeker okay with her presence? They looked to whoever appeared to have answers, and that came in the form of the Seeker Cassandra and Templar Cullen who guarded this little fort, and the chantry leaders here who threw blame around as if it were sutras against evil. The mages are to blame, the Maker dishing out divine retribution, blah, blah, blah. 

Cassandra led her to the room furthest from the entrance of the building. She wasn’t sure what it was supposed to be used for but she, Cassandra, and Cullen, the Templar whom she had met at the temple, had used this room with Leliana’s help to try and figure out strategic ways to battle the demon invasion. A hard thing to do when these rips kept popping up everywhere to fuck them over. Demons fell out of the ass end of everywhere and there wasn’t any way to close the portals. 

Solas had theorized with enough magical power and a proper conduit, such as the woman who fell from the rift at the temple, they should be able to close one… He said it was a big ‘if,’ but he seemed sure.

Salem had been skeptical of the mage and his theories.

“Adaar?” A rough voice of the seeker called out to her, cutting off her thoughts. She had plenty of time to think about the strange situation she was in later. She looked up to see the Seeker, Spymaster, and another woman in the enclosed room. She tilted her head to the people that stood shorter than her. “Are you with us?”

Leliana seemed to be amused by the larger woman’s lack of observation. Salem nodded and schooled her mind to strictly business. “So, anyone got any news?” 

The red-headed woman who had called for Cassandra in the temple gestured to the woman. She was a smaller elven woman brown hair tied back in a simple braid. “I have compiled reports from all over but, to be honest… It seems these ‘rifts’ are popping up without any rhyme or reason. There isn’t any weakness in the veil of these areas nor is there a discernible pattern. However, all of Thedas seems to be afflicted with them. We have no word for the Imperium or the qunari lands, however.”

Leliana nodded to the girl who took her leave. “As you can see, I don’t have any good news. More and more demons are pouring out in droves.”

Cassandra slammed her fist into the desk. “So you're saying there is nothing we can do? No way to fight against this?”

Salem opened her mouth to rebuff the woman when a knock on the door sounded. “Excuse me, but the prisoner is waking up.” The small voice of one of the guards permeated the chamber. 

The reaction to the news was like a spark landing on kindling. The three women took off out of the door, Cassandra leading them to the stairs. 

“Well, it’s time to find out if we get the answers we are looking for. She’ll have to know something.” Salem spoke to the two humans as they descended.

The Seeker said nothing before practically booting the door in. ‘So begins the long night.’ Salem gave an internal chuckle before entering the dungeon turned interrogation room.


	4. Chains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What do you do when you wake up in chains with little memory of what happened?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. Please read, review, and don't forget to support the story on Fanfiction as well!

Elyssa opened her eyes to the moist dark gray stone of a prison cell. Above her head water dropped ominously from a grate in the ceiling. The soft orange flicker of torchlight danced behind her. Slowly she blinked her eyes allowing time for them to adjust to the dim lighting. How had she gotten here? Her mind buzzed with annoyance as she tried to remember what had happened. There had been darkness, pain, then a voice that had pulled her from the Void she couldn’t escape. Afterward, there had been running from giant spiders in the Fade. She had climbed a cliff of some sort, almost falling to the jaws of the predators following behind her. The figure of a woman glowing white had reached down and pulled her up. Then, she fell through a rift landing in unfamiliar rubble. Somehow, she had ended up in this cell, her wrist bound in iron chains.

She needed to get back to her clan. She had to inform the keeper of what had happened. Not that she really knew what that was. A bright green light flared from her left-hand sending bouts of pain through her slender body. Her mouth opened to let out a soft gasp. Clearly, she had not dreamt about the searing fire that expanded from her hand before the voice had pulled her out of the darkness. The large iron door in front of her opened. Through it stepped a tall woman with tan skin and dark black hair cut short. Her brown eyes held a menace that made Elyssa feel weary. Behind her was a shorter woman with pale skin and light red hair hidden by a light purple hood. Standing taller than both human women was a light grey qunari woman with crimson red hair tied at her nape. The taller of the two humans circled Elyssa, coming to stand behind her.

“Tell me why we shouldn’t kill you now,” she leaned over Elyssa’s shoulder to murmur in her pointed ear. Elyssa leaned away from the woman’s threat, her face twisted in a scowl,  fury vibrating through her being. 

“Fen’Harel ma Hallam,” the elf spat at her captor. Her large eyes followed the woman's movements in a deadly glare. The human woman continued circling Elyssa, ignoring the elven curse. The qunari woman stared with grey eyes narrowed in distaste for Elyssa's words. She had understood the curse.

“The conclave is destroyed. Everyone who attended is dead,” the tall human woman ceased her circling to point at the elf bound to the floor, “except for you.” The qunari woman looked on with interest. Though she didn’t say anything aloud, it was clear she was a part of the investigation as well.

Elyssa didn’t like the accusation in the human’s tone. She couldn’t remember how she’d gotten to this cell, let alone what happened at the conclave. She glared at the woman in front of her. “You think I’m responsible,” she stated bitterly.  Her resentment for this human grew inside her like a tumor. 

The tan woman snatched her hand just as it began to glow green again. “Explain  _ this _ .” She let the hand drop.

“I can’t, nor would I to you Shem,” Elyssa spat angrily.

“What do you mean you can’t,” the woman barked with anger.

“I don’t know what that is, or how it got there,” Elyssa answered. She watched with wary eyes as anger lit the woman’s brown eyes.

“You’re lying!” she growled. She lunged towards Elyssa only to be stopped by the petite redhead and the qunari. Elyssa glared at the human posing a threat to her.

“We need her, Cassandra,” the small woman reasoned. Elyssa glared at the woman that had lunged at her. She hung her head. It seemed she did not like letting her emotions get the better of her.

“What are you going to do with me now,” Elyssa asked the redhead in a level tone. She seemed to be the more reasonable of the two humans. Elyssa saw no reason for hostility towards someone who hadn’t been hostile towards her.

“Do you remember what happened?” the qunari asked softly, “how did this begin?”

“It doesn’t matter what I say,” Elyssa argued, “I’ll still be held accountable for something I didn’t do.”

“If you don’t answer any of our questions we can’t help you prove you’re not,” the qunari woman spoke. 

“I’m an elf,” Elyssa pointed out with a scoff, “these humans will mark me guilty for that alone.”

“I’m not human,” the horned gray woman said.

As much as Elyssa didn’t trust the humans to believe her, the qunari was a different matter. The qunari were a race that humans didn’t like just as much as elves. “I remember darkness, a voice, then running,” Elyssa began, “ _ things - _ they looked like spiders - were chasing me, and then… a woman glowing white?” The human’s blue eyes brightened in interest.

“A woman!?” the small redhead exclaimed, “who was this woman?” She seemed almost excited by this statement. Elyssa wondered curiously what was so special about that particular part of her tale.

“I… don’t know,” Elyssa answered, “She reached out to me, but then….” She couldn’t finish. Her memory ended with taking the woman’s hand. R age pulsed through her veins at the lack of memory.

“Go to the forward camp, Leliana,” the woman called Cassandra sighed in defeat, “I will take her to the rift.”

“I’m going with you,” the qunari woman stated. Her tone left no room for argument. If she was honest, Elyssa preferred the qunari to the human already. The qunari hadn’t threatened her which said a lot considering her gray eyes held the same anger the human’s had. 

“What did happen?” Elyssa asked the qunari woman. It was the woman gently guiding her up by the rope the iron chains had been replaced with that answered.

“It… it would be easier to show you,” Cassandra spoke with a kinder tone. Her smooth alto voice held a note of defeat and despair. The explosion at the conclave had caused her grief. It was likely she had lost someone dear to her. In a way, Elyssa felt a little bad for her. Losing someone you loved was never easy. Watching innocent people die amongst the loved ones was even harder. She could understand why the woman had been so aggressive. She didn’t like it, but she could understand it.

* * *

The three women made their way to the large door leading outside. The ground was covered in a thick blanket of white snow along with the roofs of the nearby houses. The sky held ominous grey clouds swirling around a large green portal in the sky. The sheer intensity of it caused Elyssa to block the light with her bound hands. Around the hole thunder and lightning rumbled and flickered adding to the ominousness of it. Once her elven eyes had adjusted, she looked on with a somewhat curious interest. “We call it ‘the Breach’,” the human woman spoke, “a massive rift into the world of demons that grows larger with each passing hour and is affecting the whole of Thedas.” Together the three women looked to the rip in the sky above. “It's not the only such rift,” Cassandra spoke again, “just the largest. All were caused by the explosion at the conclave.”

“An explosion can do that?” the elven woman questioned. It wasn’t as if she didn’t believe the woman, it was just surprising.

Cassandra turned on her heel to look at the small woman. She took a few heavy steps towards the elf before the qunari stepped ever so slightly in front of her. The human’s face was serious and full of malice. Based on her earlier actions, Elyssa was glad to have the qunari’s apparent protection. “This one did. Unless we act the Breach may grow until it swallows the world.”

As her words rang through the air a large rumble came from the Breach. The mark on Elyssa’s hand responded to the pulsing of the giant sky wound. The small woman cried out in pain, falling to her knees as the mark pulsed and throbbed. She held it close to her in hopes that hiding it from the sky would make it better. Cassandra knelt on one knee to look at the woman desperately. “Each time the Breach expands your mark spreads and it is killing you.” Gone was the anger from before replaced with a tone of seriousness. Elyssa knew she was telling the truth. If she didn’t find a way to stop this Breach, she would die.

“It could be the key to stopping this,” Cassandra suggested desperately, “but there isn’t much time.”

“You say it may be the key,” Elyssa answered, “to doing what?”

“Closing the Breach,” Cassandra answered, “whether that’s possible is something we shall discover shortly.” Her tone left little room for argument, not that Elyssa had anything to argue. “It is our only chance, however,” she spoke softer, “and yours.”

“You still think I did this Shem?!” Elyssa gasped incredulously, “to myself.” Frustration and anger burned through her. Over and over she had tried to explain to this stubborn human that she hadn’t done anything at the conclave. At least not anything she could remember. Yet Cassandra refused to believe she wasn’t responsible. 

“Not intentionally,” she answered honestly, “something clearly went wrong.”

“And when you realize I’m not responsible?” Elyssa growled. How could this human possibly think she was responsible for a mark that was killing her? She may be an elven mage, but this was a level of magic far beyond any she could dream to accomplish.

“Someone is,” the woman growled back, “and you are our only suspect. You wish to prove your innocence? This is the only way.”

Elyssa nodded her head though her blood still boiled with frustration. The human was speaking the truth. She needed to stop the Breach and prove she wasn’t responsible. If she didn’t then it would be a race to see who killed her first, the mark or the people. “I understand.”

Cassandra’s face turned soft and hopeful, “then…?”

“I’ll do what I can,” Elyssa answered, “whatever it takes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fen’Harel ma Hallam - Dread Wolf End You


	5. Meeting People and Closing Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra, Salem, and Elyssa join rank with Solas and Varric and try to close the Breach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Elven translations will be at the end. Don't forget to like the story on NerdQueen228's fanfiction account as well as here. As always, enjoy.

The air was thick with tension as the three women made their way through the village. Elyssa noticed the glares and scowls on the faces of the people as they looked at her. It was clear Cassandra was not the only one who thought she was guilty of the explosion at the conclave. “They have decided your guilt,” Cassandra said, “they need it.” She led Elyssa by her bound hands quickly through the crowd of angry people. Not quickly enough for Elyssa to miss the various voices hissing ‘knife-ear’ as she passed. Cassandra noticed the elven woman’s downward cast eyes. “The people of Haven mourn our Most Holy, Divine Justina,” she offered in sympathy, “The conclave was hers.”

“The conclave where my men were,” the qunari murmured with heated sadness. Elyssa turned her gaze to the grey speckled woman with curved horns. So, she had lost people at the conclave as well. Like Cassandra she must want answers as to what had happened; but unlike Cassandra, she hadn’t threatened her to get them.

“It was a chance for peace between mages and templars,” Cassandra said wistfully, “she brought their leaders together and now they are dead.” She led them through large wooden doors and out onto a long snow-covered bridge. “We lash out like the sky, but we must think beyond ourselves as she did.” Elyssa looked incredulously at her. This was the same woman that lashed out at her simply because she was the only one that was guilty of still being alive. She rolled her eyes, humans never seemed to make sense. With any luck, Cassandra would take her own advice and stop lashing out at her.

Once they were past the large doors Cassandra stopped walking. Elyssa heard the sharp sound of metal leaving its sheathe. She looked on with weary eyes at the human approaching her with a knife. The qunari woman watched the human’s movements, ready to stop her if she tried anything shady. “There will be a trial,” she said reassuringly, pressing the blade to the ropes binding Elyssa’s hands, “I can promise no more.” She jerked the sharpened instrument upward in one swift motion causing the woven braids of the rope to give out, releasing Elyssa’s hands. “Come,” she ordered the smaller woman, “it is not far.”

“Where are you taking me?” Elyssa asked, “I thought we were going to try to seal the Breach?”

“Your mark must be tested on something smaller than the Breach,” Cassandra explained. It made sense, test the mark on something smaller before putting all hopes on sealing the Breach itself. It was a trial run, one that Elyssa couldn’t say she wasn’t grateful for. Perhaps if she couldn’t close a small rift the people wouldn’t think she was responsible for the explosion. Or maybe they would blame her more. Elyssa thought about what would happen to her when and if she was able to close the Breach. It was likely she would die in the process. Was that something she was willing to risk her life for a bunch of humans that had already decided her guilt? The hole in the sky drew her gaze upward. The sky ripping itself apart affected her clan as much as it did the people of Haven. The same people who were mourning a beloved holy leader. If it had been her keeper, her mother, Elyssa would have blamed the only person to survive the attack too. She would close the Breach as she told Cassandra she would or die trying.

They ran through another set of large wooden gates and onto another snow-covered path. Another rumbling pulse tore through the sky sending Elyssa to her knees in the process. The red-haired qunari stopped to help the elf to her feet. “Thank you…” Elyssa realized she hadn’t asked the qunari woman her name.

“Salem,” she answered for the elven woman.

“Thank you, Salem,” Elyssa nodded.

“The pulses are coming faster now,” Cassandra noted, “the larger the Breach grows, the more rifts appear, the more demons we face.”

“How did I survive the blast?” the elf asked the dark-haired woman.

“You… stepped out of a rift then fell unconscious,” she answered, “they say a woman was in the rift behind you. No one knows who she was.”

“What about a man? I heard a man’s voice before I was running from those things in the Fade.”

“There are only reports of a woman,” Cassandra answered. Elyssa nodded her head. The mysterious woman may have saved her from the fade but whoever the unknown voice belonged to had saved her from a fate far worse. “Everything in the valley was laid waste, including the Temple of Sacred Ashes,” Cassandra continued, “I suppose you’ll see soon enough.”

No more was said about the man or woman that had saved Elyssa. Instead, they ran in silence along the path onto a small bridge. They were almost halfway across with a green bolt of rock and fire slammed into the stone in front of them. The bridge crumbled into itself instantly, sending the women flying to the frozen lake below. On the frozen blue ice, a few yards in front of them the shadowy form of a demon rose from green fire. “Stay behind me,” Cassandra ordered both the elf and the qunari. She grabbed the sword and shield from her back and ran straight at the demon. On the ground, only a few feet from Elyssa an ominous green fire appeared. Salem readied two long black curved blades and prepared her stance to fight whatever arose from the ice. Elyssa’s gaze darted around in near panic as she looked for a weapon of her own. She found a box that had fallen off the bridge with them. Inside its partially opened lid was a staff. It was a simple oak staff with nothing special about it, but it was a way for her to channel her magic with more stability than without one. She darted to the staff, picking it up just as another demon appeared before her and Salem.

Together the two women attacked the demon, Salem head-on with her blades and Elyssa from a short distance with her magic. It was a lesser shade, no problem at all for steel and fire. They both ran to help Cassandra with hers just as she pulled her blade through the middle of the shade. It let out a small scream as it died and faded back into the green glow it had appeared from. The human woman turned on the elf with her sword and shield.

“Drop your weapon,” she ordered fiercely, “ _ Now. _ ”

“Dirthara-ma,” Elyssa growled. She really didn’t want to have to fight this human. Her eyes begged the woman to understand she didn’t mean her any threat, though she would do what she had to if the human didn’t back down.

“She doesn’t need a weapon to hurt you,” Salem reminded the human woman, “you need to trust her for now.” Elyssa looked at the freckled woman in thanks, though Cassandra still hadn’t backed down.

Cassandra’s brown eyes looked at the staff in Elyssa’s hands as if it were going to turn into a snake and strike her. Her mouth curved down as she debated her predicament until finally, she let out a sigh. “I suppose you are right. I should remember that you agreed to come willingly,” she told Salem before turning her attention to the elf. Both the human and the elven women relaxed their shoulders. They could continue peacefully now that an understanding had been reached.

They continued along the ice and snow fighting demons and shades as they appeared. When they finally reached the first rift, Elyssa saw various people fighting the demons that dropped from the glowing green tear including a broad-chested dwarf with a crossbow and a bald elven mage. The women said nothing as they ran to help fight the demons. Elyssa fell into place beside the elven mage, being a ranged fighter same as he. She threw up a barrier around them both and the dwarf who stood just slightly behind her. Neither man said anything as they all aimed and shot the creatures falling from the sky. The elven mage used ice magic to freeze various targets, making them easier for the melee fighters to take care of. Elyssa used the staff she was carrying to channel lightning magic to multiple targets at once. She saw the soft blue glow of her barrier fade only to be replaced by a similar blue glow from the mage beside her. She gave him an appreciative nod and continued attacking the demons. The two mages continued moving in synchrony almost as if they were partners in a deadly dance while the rest of the fighters took out the targets they hadn’t killed. Elyssa focused her energy on doing damage to as many demons as possible, targeting clusters with lightning or fire. The mage beside her seemed to know more defensive spells, focusing on keeping the demons from being able to attack. It wasn’t long before all the demons were dead. The rift turned a brighter green and pulsed. Elyssa could feel that if she was going to do anything about the rift it would have to be now. 

“Quickly, before more come through!” The elven man grabbed her left hand and held the pulsing green mark up to the rift. The rift groaned and pulsed for a long moment before snapping shut. The force of the snap sent the woman staggering into him. He caught her in steady arms and stood her upright. He quickly withdrew his limbs from the small woman.

Elyssa offered a small, grateful smile to the man who had caught her, her cheeks a little too warm. “What did you do?” she asked.

He gave her a small smile. “I did nothing. The credit is yours.” Elyssa looked at him in curiosity. Now that he was speaking in a normal tone, his voice seemed oddly familiar. Yet, Elyssa was certain she would remember having met him before. It was a moment before she realized she was staring a little too intently at the bald man.

She turned her gaze from his stormy blue eyes to the green mark upon her hand, trying to avoid the awkward situation. “At least this is good for something.”

“Whatever magic opened the Breach in the sky placed that mark upon your hand,” he said confidently, “I theorized the mark might be able to close the rifts that have opened in the Breach’s wake – and it seems I was correct.” As he spoke, Elyssa noticed the slight, suspicious squint of Salem’s eyes on the elven apostate.

“Meaning it could also close the Breach itself,” Cassandra said.

“Possibly,” the man answered softly. He turned his attention back to Elyssa and her mark, “it seems you hold the key to our salvation.” Elyssa’s eyes grew wide as she tilted her head to the side. Cassandra hadn’t put it quite like that before. 

“I’m sure the people of Haven are enthused to have an elf as their savior,” she muttered sarcastically. The key to their salvation. She had known from Cassandra that the mark would likely be key to closing the Breach. What she hadn’t thought about was how many people besides herself depended on her. She gulped a large breath of air that did nothing to still her thundering heart. How many lives would be lost if she didn’t succeed? 

“Good to know,” the voice of the dwarven man sounded from behind her taking her attention from the fear that coursed through her, “here I thought we’d be ass-deep in demons forever.” He strutted to where both elves stood along with the women who had brought her here. “Varric Tethras: rogue, storyteller, and occasionally unwelcome tagalong.” He winked slyly at the human woman, who gave him an eye roll in return. Elyssa could see there was a story to be had there. She wondered if she were going to have to get it from Varric or if Cassandra would be willing to tell her.

"It wouldn't take much for you to be ass-deep," the horned woman chuckled. Varric let out an amused snort, Cassandra released a groan of exasperation, and Elyssa and the other elf stifled a giggle at the joke. "Salem Adaar: leader of the Crimson Swords.” She was the leader of the mercenary group that had been contracted to make sure the peace talks didn’t get too… unpeaceful. She had lost her men in the explosion that took the Divine and everyone else at the conclave. Elyssa held in a frustrated sigh. Salem couldn’t help that she was yet another person that wanted answers Elyssa just didn’t have.

Elyssa turned her attention from the gray speckled woman to the dwarf with honey blond hair. “Are you with the Chantry or….”

The tall elven man chuckled in a soft rumbly way that made Elyssa want to smile too. “Was that a serious question?”

“Technically I’m a prisoner,” Varric responded, “just like you.” Elyssa raised one of her dark brows in question. He certainly was a very ‘free’ looking prisoner.

“I brought you here to tell your story to the Divine,” Cassandra defended, “clearly that is no longer necessary.” That must have been what Varric meant by unwelcomed tagalong.

“Yet, here we are,” he sassed as he pointed from himself, “lucky for you considering current events.” He held his square jaw in a half-smile.

“We?” Elyssa asked. She saw only one dwarf in the area.

“Meet Bianca,” the small man pulled out the crossbow he carried on his back. It was a solid oak brown with steel bolts. It was a beautiful weapon, thought Elyssa preferred her staff. 

“ It’s good to meet you, Varric,” Elyssa said politely, “and Bianca….” She was quite sure how to address the dwarf’s weapon. He talked about it as if it were a person so perhaps she should too? 

“You may reconsider that stance, in time,” the elven man teased with an alluring smile.

“Aww,” Varric jokingly groaned, “I’m sure we’ll become great friends in the valley, Chuckles.”

“Absolutely not,” Cassandra protested. Elyssa looked at her in surprise. Why would she oppose someone coming to help seal the Breach? Perhaps she had an aversion to the partially shirted dwarf. “Your help is appreciated Varric, but….”

“Have you been in the valley lately Seeker?” the dwarf objected with a humorless chuckle, “your soldiers aren’t in control anymore. You need me.” He gave the tall woman a smug almost flirtatious smile, knowing he had left her no room to reject him. She responded with a disgusted grunt and stalked away. Elyssa and Salem both had to hide their chuckles as she stalked past them.

“My name is Solas if there are to be introductions,” the bald man took Elyssa’s attention away from the disgruntled seeker, “I am pleased to see you still live.”

“He means ‘I kept that mark from killing you while you slept.’” Varric translated.

Elyssa’s angular head whipped around to look at Solas intensely. “It was you!” she exclaimed, “It was your voice I heard in the darkness. You saved me.”

“It looks like you have an admirer Chuckles,” Varric laughed.

“N-no,” Elyssa blushed, “I just didn’t know who I had to thank for pulling me from the darkness. Now I do. So, thank you Solas.”

“You’re quite welcome,” he smiled charmingly. He didn’t elaborate on how or why he seemed to go to such lengths to save her and Elyssa didn’t ask for an explanation. She was just happy to know she hadn’t dreamt the whole thing.

“You seem to know a great deal about it all,” Elyssa wondered curiously.

“Like you, Solas is an apostate,” Cassandra informed the elf woman.

“Technically, all mages are now apostates, Cassandra,” Solas stated matter-of-factly. He turned his attention to his fellow elf. “My travels have allowed me to learn much of the Fade. Far beyond the experience of any circle mage. I came to offer whatever help I can give with the Breach. If it is not closed, we are all doomed, regardless of origin.”

“And what will you do once this is over?” Elyssa asked curiously

“One hopes those in power will remember who helped,” he answered, “and who did not.” He turned to look at the tall human woman, “Cassandra, you should know: the magic involved here is unlike any I have seen. Your prisoner is a mage, but I find it difficult to imagine  _ any _ mage having such power.” Elyssa scowled at the man but kept silent. Objecting to his statement aloud would be the same as admitting her guilt to the seeker. She may not have opened the Breach, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t powerful. 

“Understood,” Cassandra sighed though she seemed less than pleased at his suggestion, “we must get to the forward camp quickly.” She began walking towards the said camp. Everyone else followed suit, including Elyssa who fell in behind Solas and Varric.

A tense cloud of worry and fear hung over the group. Varric looked at Elyssa and gave a small shrug of his shoulders, “Well…Bianca’s excited,” he said, attempting to lighten the mood.

The group carried on at a quiet, hurried pace. They came across another rift and set about closing it much like they had the previous one. Elyssa studied the glowing, throbbing green tear in curiosity. Her mark throbbed and glowed in time with the rift. Perhaps if she used the mark to try to control the rift it would be easier to close it in the end. She decided to test her theory by placing herself directly under the rift. She felt the warm presence of Solas at her back. They said nothing as they waited for the unsought wave of demons to appear. Once they did the team set to work. Cassandra and Salem ran head on to take the creatures on at point-blank range. Varric shot his crossbow from a safe distance, using caltrops to stop anything from getting too close to him. Solas and Elyssa used fire and ice mines to keep demons from getting to them. Each mage made sure a barrier was always around them, falling into a natural pattern of casting one as soon as the other’s started to fade. Elyssa noticed a barrier around Salem and Cassandra, assumingly at the doing of Solas. Elyssa felt the rift begin to pulse faster. Now was the time to test her theory. She pushed her hand outward and let her mind fill with thoughts of the rift obeying, the demons weakening, and the tear closing. She was awarded by a snap of energy from the rift around her mark. It hadn’t closed but the demons were frozen in their place, making easy targets. Elyssa repeated this process, though she could feel the drain each snap of energy took on her, while the rest of the team made easy work of the creatures she made vulnerable until she felt the rift was weak enough to be closed. She didn’t know how or why she had the mark on her hand, but she knew she was already beginning to get the hang of using it, as tolling as it may be. Maybe she could close the Breach after all.

Once the rift was closed the party continued to the forward camp. There the woman called Leliana was arguing with a man in a Chantry uniform. Leliana saw the party approaching, walking forward to meet them. “Chancellor Rodrick this is…”

“I know who she is,” the older man growled. His eyes took in the sight of Elyssa: the small angular body, the pointed ears, the staff on her back. His brows furrowed, his mouth pointed downward, several stressed lines on his forehead and cheeks indicated how displeased he was with the elf before him. Elyssa felt even more uncomfortable with him than she had with Cassandra. “As Grand Chancellor of the Chantry, I hereby order you to take this criminal to Val Royeaux to face execution.”

Elyssa glared at the man with a searing hatred. Her arm moved ever so slightly to make an easy job of grabbing her staff should she have to fight her way out. Cassandra scoffed from behind her, drawing her attention for a moment from the angry Chantry personnel. “Order me!? You are a glorified clerk. A bureaucrat!”

“And you are a thug,” the Chancellor retorted, “but a thug who supposedly serves the Chantry!” His black-capped head shook angrily.

“We serve the Most Holy,” Leliana defended, “as you well know.” Her hazel blue eyes pierced the man with a glare that dared him to argue. Unfortunately, Chancellor Rodrick didn’t seem like a smart man.

“Justina is dead,” he cried in frustration, “we must elect a replacement, and obey  _ her _ orders on the matter!

“Isn’t closing the Breach the more pressing issue?” Elyssa asked in bewilderment. Was this shem really worried about politics when there was a giant hole in the sky?!

“ _ You _ brought this upon us in the first place!” he yelled.

“Fenedhis lasa,” Elyssa spat. Behind her, Solas choked on his breath while Salem let out what sounded like a laugh. Elyssa glanced back at the elf and the qunari curiously. It was a common curse amongst the Dalish, so she thought nothing of it. Her companions, however surprisingly they knew her language, seemed to find her choice of words interesting.

Cassandra approached the table Chancellor Rodrick was standing behind. “Call a retreat, Seeker,” he pleaded now deciding to ignore Elyssa completely, “our position here is hopeless.”

“We can stop this before it’s too late,” the Seeker disagreed confidently. Her brown eyes glittered with determination. Elyssa couldn’t help but notice how much more confident she sounded. It appeared that proving she could control the mark and close the smaller rifts Cassandra’s confidence in her grew. While it was a little relieving that Cassandra was no longer determined to condemn her for the tragedy at the Temple, there was that much more pressure added to Elyssa’s small shoulders. Even Cassandra was counting on her now. What would she do if she let all these people down?

“How?” the Chancellor scoffed, “you won’t survive long enough to reach the Temple, even with all of your soldiers.” His voice was softer, less angry now though it did nothing to help convince Cassandra she needed to give up.

“We must reach the Temple,” Cassandra argued, “it’s the quickest route.” Her voice was a mixture of determination and pleading. She would do whatever she had to in order to get the Breach sealed. Or she would die trying.

“But not the safest,” Leliana said in her nasal accent. Everyone looked at her curiously, waiting for her to elaborate. “Our soldiers can charge through as a distraction while we go through the mountains.”

“We lost contact with an entire squad on those mountains,” Cassandra shook her head, “it’s too risky.” She and Leliana stared into the distance, each trying to figure out the best course of action. Cassandra turned to face the Dalish elf. “How do you think we should proceed?” she asked.

The elven woman raised her dark brows in surprise and annoyance. Cassandra had already come a long way since threatening her while she had been in chains, but it was a little late to be asking her opinion now. “Now you’re asking me what I think shem?”

“You have the mark,” Solas pointed out matter-of-factly. Elyssa was getting irritated with everyone pointing out the painful mark she bore on her hand. She hadn’t asked for it to be placed there. She didn’t even know how it got there, to begin with. So why treat her as if she had all the answers when she had made it clear she was more clueless than everyone else on the matter.

“And you have a wolf’s jawbone hanging around your neck but I’m not going to ask you how I should kill a wolf,” Elyssa sassed. Solas’s light brown eyebrows shot up in surprise. Clearly, no one had spoken to him in such a way before. Or no one had noticed what the artifact hanging around his neck was.

“You are the one we must keep alive,” Cassandra stated, “since we cannot agree on our own…”

“Would anyone else like to tell me it is solely my decision or does someone else have an opinion on how we should proceed?” Elyssa didn’t bother to hide her irritation at the continued responsibility everyone kept adding upon her. If someone, anyone, could help her even with something as small as an opinion on which path they should take she wouldn’t feel so helpless. She was used to some responsibility, she had been First for her clan after all, but there were so many lives at stake here. The whole of Thedas was at stake. 

“If you’re asking,” the voice of Salem sounded from behind her, “then I believe it would be best if it was the mountain path that was taken.”

Elyssa gave the party a few more moments to help decide, hoping someone else would speak up as well. No one, but Salem had given their opinion and they all still waited for her to make the final decision. “If I am the one to be making a choice,” Elyssa huffed, “then use the mountain path.” Cassandra had said an entire squad had been lost on the mountain path. While they may not find the squad alive, they could at least find out what happened to them. Answers were better than wondering endlessly if there had been something they could have done to save those people. 

Both the Seeker and the Spymaster nodded. The small company that had gathered to seal the Breach marched on through the mountain path. There they sealed another rift and found what was left of the missing squad. It had been worth the risk to be able to save people that had originally been thought of as dead. Any relief Elyssa had felt at saving the missing squad evaporated when they finally reached the Temple of Sacred Ashes. Bodies upon bodies riddled the ground in disgusting fly invested heaps. There was steel melted onto the flesh of some bodies. Faces that had been burned and twisted beyond any hope of recognition on others. Some bodies had become mostly bone, the entirety of skin and muscle having been ripped away. The small elf’s stomach churned at the sight. In the middle of it, all was the swirling green and black storm of a rift reaching into the Breach.

“I have to close that?” the white-haired woman gulped in slight panic.

“This rift was the first,” Solas answered, “seal it and perhaps you seal the Breach.” Elyssa nodded her small head. It wasn’t going to be easy, but it was sealing the Breach or dying from the mark. The group found a way down to the middle of the destruction where the rift was. Voices echoed around the crumbled walls covered in debris, ashes, and grim. One voice was the shrill accented soprano of the Divine. The other was a deep raspy voice of an unknown man. Neither voice triggered any memory for Elyssa. As they walked through the ash and rock to the tall thin tower of the wall the explosion had left behind the mark began glowing and throbbing on Elyssa’s hand. 

From the rift, black fog exploded revealing the last thing that had happened there. Through the fog, Elyssa could see a shadowed figure with red glowing eyes and the Divine trapped in a magical binding of some unknown origin. Still, she couldn’t remember this. It was literally playing out in front of her and she couldn’t recall a thing. Frustration boiled in her veins. What had happened to her memory? The scene continued to play out, a copy of Elyssa appeared, the version of her before the mark. “What’s going on here?” the former version of herself asked. She had been right there! She had seen the man and the Divine. Yet the man was as foreign to her as the qun. She held no more answers as to what happened to the Divine. Why was she in a binding? What was the man planning? She had just as many questions as her companions who were seeing this for the first time, but she should be the one with the answers.

“You  _ were _ there!” Cassandra exclaimed. She began bombarding the she-elf with questions. What had she seen? What had happened? Who was that man?

“I don’t remember!” Elyssa growled in frustration. She wanted to know just as much as Cassandra did what had happened. She wanted to know more so why she couldn’t remember anything.

“The Fade bleeds into this place,” Solas commented, “these are echoes of what happened here.” He took a short moment to examine the rift. “This rift is not sealed, but it is closed… albeit temporarily,” he turned to look at Elyssa knowledge dancing in the depths of his eyes, “I believe that with the mark the rift can be opened, then sealed properly and safely.”

“That’s going to attract attention from the other side,” Salem pointed out. Elyssa looked curiously at the qunari woman. How would she know something like this?

“That means demons,” Cassandra said, “Stand ready!”

Elyssa breathed as calmly as she could – something that would’ve been much easier if the fate of the world wasn’t depending on her. Timidly she raised her left hand even with the rift. Immediately the entirety of it was lit a bright blinding green. She felt the rift pull her, resisting her control. She pushed harder with her mind, using all her mental strength to make the rift submit to her. As soon as it did, she opened it. In a flurry of movements, everyone was fighting the demons that stepped from the rift. Elyssa focused her efforts on the large pride demon that opening the rift had summoned. It was almost as big as the pieces of the conclave that were still standing, ugly, and very aggressive. The demon seemed to take pleasure in the pain it caused whoever got caught in his whips of electricity, laughing and smiling at the howls of pain. It needed to be taken out and fast.

“Cassandra! Salem!” the small elven woman called, “keep that thing off of us!” She was met with their nods while they and several other soldiers ran to hold the demon back from the ranged fighters. “Varric stay hidden and shoot from the higher ground!” The dwarf did as was ordered, keeping the demon too distracted to take out the melee fighters. “Solas with me!” Together the two elves ran around the last standing piece of the room where the conclave had been. Elyssa laid down a fire mine, preventing any lesser demons from getting the two elves. Solas followed suit with an ice mine behind them. Elyssa cast a barrier, then readied her mark. She used the power of her mark to disrupt the rift. Like with the lesser demons at the previous rift, the pride demon was frozen in place. “Now! Everyone give it everything you’ve got!” A volley of arrows from the archers hit the frozen demon. Varric’s poisoned bolts fired one after the other into the demon’s chest. The sound of swords and daggers connecting with flesh and bone rang through the air. Elyssa pushed all her willpower and mana into producing a constant bombardment of firebolts. Solas shot strong, sharp shards of ice into the demon.

After a lot of effort, the demon was dead. Elyssa thrust her hand upward. This rift was so much more powerful than the rest. It began draining her of the little energy she had left. With sheer determination, she used her mark to make the rift bow and submit to her once more. With one final pull, she felt the rift snap closed. She smiled a soft triumphant smile to her bald companion. She was feeling relieved that it was finally over when her vision began going dark around the edges. Her heart thumped unevenly in her chest; her breath came in a shallow rasp. She looked once more to the man who had pulled her from the darkness before. “Ma halani,” she breathed. She saw the startled blue eyes of the elf and heard the sound of feet pounding as she fell to the ground. Then the world around her faded into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dirthara-ma - may you learn  
> Fenedhis lasa - go suck a wolf’s dick  
> Ma halani - help me


End file.
